Back
The Pittsburgh Steelers will have a new look in 2026, with a new head coach and more as change unfolds around the historic organization.
With the Steelers winning the AFC North in 2025, they’ll also be facing a first-place schedule for the first time since 2021.
Week 1: Sunday, Sept. 13, 1 p.m. vs. Atlanta Falcons, FOX, 20-13 WWeek 2: Sunday, Sept. 20, 1 p.m. at New England Patriots, CBS, 20-3 LWeek 3: Sunday, Sept. 27, 1 p.m. vs. Cincinnati Bengals, CBS, 30-27 WWeek 4: Thursday, Oct. 1, 8:15 p.m. at Cleveland Browns, Amazon, 27-24 LWeek 5: Sunday, Oct. 11, 1 p.m. vs. Indianapolis Colts, CBS, 34-22 WWeek 6: Sunday, Oct. 19, 1 p.m. at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, CBS, 26-19 W (OT)Week 7: Sunday, Oct. 25, 9:30 a.m. vs. New Orleans Saints at Paris, France, NFLN, W 16-10Week 8: Sunday, Nov. 1, 1 p.m. vs. Cleveland Browns, CBS Week 9: BYE Week 10: Sunday, Nov. 15, 8:20 p.m. at Cincinnati Bengals, NBC Week 11: Sunday, Nov. 22, 4:25 p.m. at Philadelphia Eagles, CBS Week 12: Friday, Nov. 27, 3 p.m. vs. Denver Broncos, Amazon Week 13: Sunday, Dec. 6, 8:20 p.m. vs. Houston Texans, NBC Week 14: Monday, Dec. 14, 8:15 p.m. at Jacksonville Jaguars, ESPN Week 15: Sunday, Dec. 20, 1 p.m. vs. Baltimore Ravens, CBS Week 16: Sat/Sun, Dec. 26/27, TBD vs. Carolina Panthers, TBD Week 17: Sunday, Jan. 3, 1 p.m. at Tennessee Titans, CBS Week 18: Sat/Sun, Jan 9/10, TBD at Baltimore Ravens, TBD
Turnabout is fair play. Last year, the Steelers caught the jet-lagged Cleveland Browns after they returned from a trip to London. This year, it’ll be the Browns who are benefitting from the Steelers being tired after they return from Paris.
The Browns bring an infamous statistic with them to Pittsburgh. Cleveland has not won a regular-season game in Pittsburgh since 2003, a drought that spans more than two decades. While the Browns did stun the Steelers in the 2021 postseason, the regular-season curse remains intact. Cleveland will be desperate to finally flip the script in one of the league’s most hostile environments.
The Steelers head to Cincinnati with painful memories from their last trip to Paycor Stadium, where Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins fueled an offensive explosion in prime time. One possible silver lining for Pittsburgh: this matchup won’t feature a Mike Tomlin–led team on Thursday Night Football, a setting that has historically been unforgiving.
It will, however, feature Tomlin, as the former Steelers coach will be in the building for NBC’s Football Night in America pregame show, his debut broadcast with his former team.
The Keystone Clash returns to Philadelphia, where history is firmly against Pittsburgh. Jalen Hurts has never lost to the Steelers, and Pittsburgh has not won in Philadelphia since 1965. A road win here would be well outside the norm and one of the more surprising results on the schedule.
The Pittsburgh Steelers will host the Denver Broncos on Black Friday, the first time the Steelers have ever played on the day after Thanksgiving. The game will be streamed via Amazon Prime, and will also be available over-the-air in the Pittsburgh market, on a station to be named at a later date.
It will mark just the sixth time the Steelers have played on a Friday, and the first time since 1946. The Steelers were 3-2 in five all-time Friday games, with their last game a 14-7 home win over the Chicago Cardinals at Forbes Field to open the 1946 season on Sept. 20.
The NFL has traditionally set aside Friday nights for high school football and that was codified into law via the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961, which prohibits the NFL from broadcasting games after 6 p.m. on Friday nights or Saturdays between the second Friday in September and the second Saturday in December,.
That’s why the Black Friday game must kick off at 3 p.m., but with the day after Thanksgiving a day off for many Americans, the NFL and Amazon Prime Video decided to pursue playing a game during the day.
The first Black Friday game was in 2023, when the Miami Dolphins beat the New York Jets. The Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Las Vegas Raiders in 2024 and the Chicago Bears beat the Philadelphia Eagles last season.
The Steelers last faced the Broncos in 2024, when they went on the road for a 13-7 win Denver. The last game between the teams at Acrisure Stadium was a 27-19 Steelers win in 2021. Pittsburgh has won the last three games between the teams overall.
This matchup carries a bitter edge. The Houston Texans eliminated the Steelers in the Wild Card round less than a season ago, winning 30–6 in what ultimately became Mike Tomlin’s final game as head coach. With that loss still fresh, it’s hard to imagine this game won’t feel personal for Pittsburgh.
The game will also feature Tomlin on the NBC Football Night in America broadcast crew live in Pittsburgh.
The Steelers travel to Jacksonville to face Trevor Lawrence, who is 1–0 against Pittsburgh after a rain-soaked win at Acrisure Stadium in 2022. Prior to that, the Steelers had won their previous two games in Duval, including a historic comeback led by Ben Roethlisberger in 2018. New coach Liam Coen will be eager to rewrite Jacksonville’s uneven home history against Pittsburgh.
The Steelers will host the Baltimore Ravens in what is almost always one of the NFL’s most physical matchups. The last time these two met in Pittsburgh, the game carried massive implications, a winner-take-all showdown for the AFC North. Pittsburgh emerged victorious after a heartbreaking missed field goal by Ravens kicker Tyler Loop, a moment that still stings in Baltimore and fuels the rivalry even further.
History is firmly stacked against the Carolina Panthers. Carolina has never defeated the Steelers in Pittsburgh and hasn’t beaten Pittsburgh anywhere since 1996, the only win in franchise history against them. Still, after a season in which the Panthers nearly upset Matthew Stafford’s Rams in the playoffs, a revamped Carolina team led by Bryce Young could arrive eager to finally make history.
This game will be played on either Saturday, Dec. 26 or Sunday, Dec. 27.
Pittsburgh enters Nashville looking to continue its recent success against the Tennessee Titans. The Steelers’ last trip to Nissan Stadium resulted in a 27–24 win in 2020, when former Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith was calling plays for Tennessee. Since then, the teams have met twice in Pittsburgh, both Steelers victories.
Pittsburgh travels to M&T Bank Stadium aiming for its second straight road win against the Baltimore Ravens. Last season’s matchup ended in a Steelers victory, but not without controversy, as a late Isaiah Likely touchdown was ruled incomplete. This game also marks a turning point in the rivalry, as it will be one of the first times in nearly two decades that John Harbaugh and Mike Tomlin are not both leading their respective sidelines.
This game will be played on either Saturday, Jan. 9, or Sunday, Jan. 10.
For just the second time in 12 seasons, the Steelers will open up the 2026 season on their home turf. The Steelers will host the Atlanta Falcons at Acrisure Stadium to kick off the 2026 season at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 13.
The Steelers went eight years without opening the regular season at home from 2015-22, a process that includes random chance, but also reflects the realities of two teams sharing parking facilities on the North Shore.
The Steelers and Pittsburgh Pirates cannot play at the same time, and rarely play on the same day, because they both sell parking in the same lots. This season, the Pirates are on the road for a six-day trip to Chicago, where they will play the White Sox and the Cubs, during the opening week of the NFL season.
Things didn’t go so well for the Steelers the last time they opened at home. They were demolished, 30-7, by the San Francisco 49ers on Sept. 10, 2023. They beat the Cleveland Browns, 30-27, in 2014 for their last Week 1 home win. The Steelers and Falcons will be meeting in the first week of the season for the second time in three years. The clubs met in Atlanta for Week 1 in 2024, with the Steelers winning 18-10 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, with Justin Fields helping guide the offense on the road and Chris Boswell providing all the scoring with six field goals.
The Steelers have won five straight against the Falcons overall, and have not lost to Atlanta in Pittsburgh ever, with a perfect 7-0-1 record against the Falcons in Pittsburgh. The Falcons’ last trip to Pittsburgh came in 2018, a convincing 41–17 Steelers win highlighted by Antonio Brown surpassing 100 receiving yards.
The Steelers return to Foxborough, Mass. hoping to build on last season’s 21–14 win over the Patriots at Gillette Stadium. That game came before Drake Maye and a revamped New England roster found their footing. The Patriots also turned the ball over five times, a flaw Mike Vrabel will almost certainly have corrected.
The Patriots will have some extra rest, as they are playing in the season opener in a Super Bowl LX rematch against the Seattle Seahawks. This game will serve as New England’s home opener.
The Cincinnati Bengals come to Pittsburgh after the teams split their season series last year. While the Steelers dominated the Bengals at Acrisure Stadium, that win came without star quarterback Joe Burrow under center. With Burrow expected to be healthy, Cincinnati will arrive motivated, and likely looking for revenge.
Trips to the Dawg Pound have quietly become troublesome for Pittsburgh. The Steelers have not won in Cleveland since Ben Roethlisberger was under center. Last season’s loss was especially costly, as Pittsburgh failed to beat a four-win Browns team with the AFC North on the line, making this venue a lingering mental hurdle.
Thursday Night Football has been unkind to the Steelers, as well. Pittsburgh is 0-9 against AFC North opponents on TNF on the road and 14-22 all-time.
The Indianapolis Colts historically struggle in Pittsburgh, and that trend continued last season when the Steelers defeated Indianapolis in a chaotic game where the Colts turned the ball over seven times. If Indianapolis hopes to change its narrative at Acrisure Stadium, protecting the football will be non-negotiable.
Pittsburgh’s matchup with Tampa Bay brings a familiar name in Baker Mayfield. While Mayfield is 2–5 against the Steelers, his most memorable win came in Cleveland’s Wild Card upset in Pittsburgh. The Buccaneers, however, typically struggle against the Steelers. The most recent meeting came in 2022, when Mitch Trubisky out-dueled Tom Brady during Brady’s farewell season.
For the second year in a row, the Steelers will be treading new ground, as they will be a part of the first-ever NFL game in France, one year after playing the first regular season game in Ireland.
The 2026 NFL Paris Game will be held at the Stade de France, which was built in 1998 and at over 81,000 seats, is France’s largest stadium. The Stade de France is primarily the home venue for the French national football team and the French national rugby union team.
The Steelers have also played an international game in London, facing the Vikings at Wembley Stadium in 2013.
Back
Top
| Privacy Statement Terms of Service Contact |
Refresh
|
All the best breaking news stories from Apex Football Lite. Optimised for feature phones and low end Android devices, Apex Football Lite helps users with legacy devices and poor network connectivity access the latest football news and live scores. Particularly relevant for breaking football news in Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa.